2023-01-21: Of Three Minds
- Cutscene: Of Three Minds
- Cast: Naoko Suzuki and friends
- Where: Guest Quarters, Ra Mari
- Date: 0097-01-21
- Summary: Following the events in the Hangar Bay, Naoko prepares for her move to the Ra Mari II. Her two ever-present friends weigh in with their opinions.
Naoko goes through the motions of engaging the door locking mechanism of her guest quarters on the Ra Mari, already used to it despite her short time on the ship. Upon the door sliding closed, she turns, leaning against the now sealed entrance. She closes her eyes and lets out a deep breath.
"Haaa... Barely got here and already moving again. Oh well... guess I better start packing."
She opens her eyes, surveying the room. It's in almost the exact empty state as it was when she got here, the only differences are the messy sheets and her old pink backpack from middle school leaning against the wall, filled to the brim with boxes of PaPPy. A sweatdrop forms on her forehead.
"...I don't actually have much to pack, do I?"
A familiar tingling mental sensation precedes the reprimanding voice she expected to pipe up sooner or later.
>"Stupid. That York lady played you like a fiddle. Didn't I tell you not to trust people so easily?"<
Naoko calmly places her hands behind her head. "You did tell me that. I decided to not to listen."
>"Come on, this is serious! She can hear us! I don't know what her deal is, but for your own good, you shouldn't get close to people like that."<
Naoko mmms non-committally, chewing down a PaPPy stick that suddenly appeared in her mouth.
>"Stop ignoring me! In case you didn't notice, these people are military. And they're planning to fight the WORLD. If you stay here, you're gonna get caught up in it. You know you're not prepared for that."<
"I know. So I'll improvise. Same as always."
As the loud, boyish voice lets out the mental equivalent of a groan, a subdued feminine voice makes itself heard.
>"Ummm... can I say something?"<
>"I dunno, CAN you?"<
Naoko frowns, munching down her third stick of PaPPy before turning her attention back to the voices in her head. "Hey, hey, be nice. What's on your mind, Ariel?"
>"Oh, well... I just wanted to say that, I think it's wonderful that you managed to make new friends so quickly. So, even if Uriel isn't, I'm proud of you, Nova."<
Naoko smiles. It's a nice sentiment. And... it's nice to hear that name. Makes her smile every time. Sometimes she wonders if maybe she should have picked a different alias than her online handle of many years... but nah, it's probably fine. Saves the hassle of getting used to something new. Now all she has to do is lean into her idealized online persona, except in real life. Seems to be going pretty well.
She is unsurprised to be snapped out of her thoughts by a frustrated reaction to the encouragement she received.
>"Ughhh, that is so sickeningly sweet, if I had teeth I'm sure they'd be rotting. You're hopeless, both of you. Am I the only one who sees how dangerous all of this is? Don't come crying to me if something bad happens!"<
Abruptly, Naoko's right hand shoots up. She quickly moves it towards her hair, fist closing around the object adorning her right braid, then /yanking/ it free. She brings the butterfly-shaped black metal hairclip she removed close to her face... and proceeds to rub her cheek against it.
"Awww, you're so adorable when you're worried about me!"
>"Uwaaaa!! Idiot! Dumbass! Let go of me! LET GO!"<
She obliges, and the object immediately zooms off, shooting under the bunk's covers. Twin giggles follow in its wake. Naoko then raises her left hand, index finger extended. Under its own power, the other, white-colored 'hairclip' leaves its perch, fluttering like the butterfly it resembles, to land on the waiting finger.
>"Honestly, though... Uriel does have a point. Are you really going to be okay out there on your own? I mean, we'll be there if you need us, of course, but if there's others around who can hear us, we can't just..."<
Naoko pauses in brief thought, before nodding. "...Yeah. I know. I don't blame you for being so quiet the past few days. It's for the best, while there's still so much we don't know about what's going on."
>"Mumu... But, I feel bad. I wish there was more I could do for you, Nova."<
Naoko smiles, reaching out to pet the white butterfly with a single finger.
"There there. Knowing you're there for me is good enough. Trust me, I'll be fine!"
She pauses, taking a deep breath. She's not nearly as sure as all that. All she can do is have faith in herself. That is... faith in the 'her' that she'd like to be. She nods, decisively, the calmer half of her small companions taking wing as she shifts her stance to a bolder one, one hand on her hip, the other forming a fist to emphasize her determination.
"That's right, I /will/ be fine, this is no big deal! I, Nova Stellar, can do anything I set my mind to!"